Boozy Banana Bread

Happy almost New Year! It’s a lazy Sunday and I figured we could end the year with a great cup of coffee and some Bourbon Spiked Chocolate Banana Bread!

My first attempt, didn’t turn out so well…

So what happened? Well, my oven was giving me problems. The temperature was fluctuating so the loaf didn’t set properly. I added LARGE chocolate chips which made the batter too heavy. Between those two things, the loaf fell apart when I took it out of the pan. On the upside, I learned not to add so many chips when they are that big and always, always double-check the temperature of my oven! Overall, it wasn’t a total failure. I turned this mistake into something fabulous! But that’s for another post…

Thankfully, I had enough ingredients to make another loaf! This one turned out better, don’t you think?

This was my first time baking with Bourbon. I love Brandy in pan gravy, I use Vodka to make homemade Vanilla extract and I may have been known to add an occasional splash of Spiced Rum to my Cola, but the Bourbon was new for me. Can I tell you a secret? It’s AMAZING in this recipe! I love the boozy flavor, hence Boozy Banana Bread. It just adds that perfect touch to the classic chocolate and banana flavor combination.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5 inch loaf pan. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 – 5 minutes.
Add eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute between each addition. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add bananas, lemon juice and bourbon. Beat until well incorporated.
Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture all at once. Beat until incorporated. Add the pecans and chocolate chips and stir together gently with a spatula.
Spoon the mixture into your prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow the loaf to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely!